I'm wondering if there was some sort of misunderstanding for the first girl. I'm South Korean and in Korean culture, you do not age on your birthday but Jan 1st with everyone else and also you are "1" right from birth. It's more like a "first year" kind of thing and not saying the baby is actually a year old. Example: A baby born in October of 2000 is at the age of 1 until Jan 1, 2001 when they will turn 2. Despite the fact that the baby has at max lived 3 months, they are now said to be 2. This creates the discrepancy that most Westerners tend to find confusing. In the year 2016, to Westerners, our example baby will be called 15 years old if asked her age in August and be called 16 years old in October. Meanwhile, in Korea, the same person would be said to be 17 for the entire year of 2016. I could totally see people not grasping this difference in culture back then. It might just be that different people claimed different ages for this girl because one coach knew to give the western age while another one didn't, etc. Not saying that's what happened but it's possible.
This is exactly what I'm thinking. There is a system called the korean age. I think whoever filled the documents just stated what basic thing they knew. Btw, South Korea just dismissed this age system last year.
Firstly, international age is used here. Secondly, usage of korean age totally has absolutely no way of making someone age+2years in 2 consecutive years(even though its possible in int sys) so your argumentis invalid. No one can have an age range of 2 years in this situation even using the normal aging system as the events aren't even a full year apart. 1991 wc- September 1992 Olympics-25th July-9th Aug (For reference)
@@If6wasnineI mean, there are plenty of documentaries with defectors talking about life there. And you can visit North Korea but it's very restrictive.🤷🏾♀️
I am almost certain that most people here know for certainty that she was not part of the deception because we know that countries like North Korea, China and Russia always cheat in any athletic competition.
@@cactmayne We know that; it's the person who made the video who does not seem to know that. They're putting it all on the gymnast saying "she lied" "she changed her age three times." The girls may not have even known about it, but even if they did they wouldn't have had a choice in the matter. They just did what their coaches and officials told them to do. What are they going to do, argue that it's not right and get their whole family sent to labor camps or worse? The narrator shouldn't be throwing the blame on the girls like that.
There is a possibility that they don’t actually know well how old a person is. I doubt they have an efficient enough bureaucracy to register every person and farming people sometimes uses different calendars.
in korea they say babies are age one when they are born. the NK team were clearly adjusting their members ages to fit the western standard of beginning at age zero.
It’s not the gymnasts who are lying about their age. It’s the coaches, clubs and politicians who are. Can you imagine the pressure mentally on these youngsters?
@@michaellavery4899 It's not that easy. The N.Korean Gov is crazy (& evil). Who knows how they calculate age there... And the athletes' "official" paperwork is often faked by Gov. Either way, these girls can't say/do anything. They might not even know. Regardless, in competitions like this, just apologizing isn't enough. They're pretty powerless. Also, I've gotta feeling the admins were looking for a reason to ban N.Korea, for political reasons. Basically, whole country was "deplatformed" & the age change gave the admins an excuse to do it. Really sad. Punishing athletes because of politics isn't fair 😢
North Korea after disqualification: Ayooo, still a win for us at least we were allowed to participate unlike a certain Russian neighbor and their dictator regime 👀🤣
@@lulacrips8471 When children are born in South Korea, they're already 1 years old. On their 1st birthday, they are 2 years old. So, they're birthday is the start of their age, rather than the end of their age, as celebrated in the rest of the world.
For anyone wondering why there's a minimum age, it's for the healrh & safety of the gymnasts as their young bodies are developing & going through puberty. Super young gymnasts were being pushed to try dangerous skills they weren't yet ready for, physically or mentally, in order to compete at the senior level. A minimum age of 16 gives their bones & growth plates more time to develop & strengthen, more time for repetitions to gain muscle memory, more time for the girls to mature mentally which means they're more able to make smart decisions & speak up regarding their training & health, etc. It's also allowed gymnasts to extend their time in the sport if they want. Previously, the ideal age to compete was about 14 - 18, & anyone competing over the age of 21 was extremely rare. It was almost a given that they'd retire from the sport or compete only at the collegiate level after that because they were simply "too old" & unable to keep up. As it turns out, when girls are allowed to train smartly, aren't put through mental, physical, & sexual abuse, & aren't forced to train & compete with inuries that have permanent, career-shortening effects because their window of opportunity is so small... they're quite capable of competing into their mid to late 20s & beyond.
@@MannMinnMonnyes, that's why so many Americans have to break free from this country to try and get asylum in N. Korea. I read about that in the paper every week: don't you?!
For anyone wonder what the issue is, or why they would lie, you need to be 16 years old to be eligible to compete in IOC sanctioned events. If a gymnast is 16 at one event and then shows up 8 years later claiming to be 22 then they were really 14 at the prior event. Reporting proper ages (and not cheating) is ultimately the responsibility of the nation's committee which is why their entire program faced a suspension.
i dont see any advantage of being 14 over 16 ... i doubt that being 14 will boost anything .. the IOC is a joke .. they let men box women but cry when it comes to age . especially when making yourself older than you are .. all the africans who are close to 30 are lying that they are 15 to play against kids in highschool and college to get into the NBA .. nobody knows how old mutombo or manute bol were .. or any other african ... they are the real age cheater .. being a whole grown man playing against children .. but when children are whooping grown ups in gymnastics then its all of a sudden an issue ?
If they're under 16 but capable of performing these feats on the world stage, is the age barrier actually a good thing or a bad thing? I think it would be more interesting knowing that a 12-14 year old managed to get the gold medal at the Olympics. Not saying the country shouldn't be banned for misreporting, but I'm wondering what the point of the age requirement standards are then. Like imagine someone was 13 but beat Usain Bolt's time.
@@pigs18 so then human feats wise being younger gives you an advantage for gymnastics? I think there’s some useful science to learn here if it was ethical to measure data.
@@genericscout5408 Gymnastics has a long sorrid tale of manipulating women's health to maintain prepubescent form. But for every rule in the book there's a fifty-fifty chance the answer behind its existence s, "Bela Kerolyi" who found every loophole on both sides of the Iron Curtain.
Some have proposed that theyay not even know her age? So maybe they put what she looks like. Then again, supposedly they found put to ban the team. Are there age groups?
they banned the nation from competing at any of the international events-which occur every year. genius of you to comment on something you're not educated on
Because winning athletes is part of their government propaganda. Do you think URSS supported sports for health or love? It was part of the country's propaganda. It was not the gymnast that lied. It was her government.
@@jasonclassmate2292 the age limit to participate back in the days was as young as 15 years old. (Same data sent by DPRK) The public back then suspect Kim was even 11 years old. It was the same time when there was a massive debate whether there is a need to increase age limit for young gymnast. (It finally happened in 1997) Letting an athlete to complete any younger than this is considered dangerous for their body
Not that I trust NK but..."Korean age is generally one or two years older than international age, which is based on a person's birthday. In Korea, people age up on January 1st each year, regardless of their actual birthday. For example, a baby born on New Year's Eve is considered two years old the next day."
to be fair both North and South Koreans have their own calendar, not sure about North Korean, but in China and s.korea, the moment you are born you are one years old, and when lunar new years comes by, technically you then become two years old. Although it’s been standardized to follow the global model. But domestically it still follow the old model
And don't forget China does the SAME thing by sending young gymnast to the summer Olympics or any gymnast for the international community etc. The last time I heard China had a scandal that they sent a 12 yr old that lied to be 15 to the summer Olympics I think the IOC banned her for 4 to 10 years then later on either her or someone else lied that she was 15 or 16 but she was like either 11 or 12 years old she was banned and the IOC banned almost all the Chinese gymnast for (I think) 4 to 8 years and they put more rules to check all females and males gymnast not only in China but all countries after North Korea and China sending young gymnast to the summer Olympics etc.
In some countries they consider you 1 at birth and everyone's age increases on the first day of the year. So if someone was born on the last day of the year they would be considered 2 years old on their second day of life.
This is true. South Korea also does that. I've heard that you're considered 1 at birth. I'll bet the forms were confusing especially since they were likely not in the Korean language, so whoever was translating probably didn't know the cultural difference in counting ages. Rather than disqualifying the team, the Olympic board should have worked with them to clear up the misunderstanding. I don't see why she'd be disqualifiedas when she was older and clearly within the age requirements. (I do understand that the gymnastics rule makers want the athletes to be old enough to do some moves without causing damage, but once a person is old enough, it shouldn't be an issue anymore. That's sad she was stripped of her medals 2 times for something she probably doesn't understand. Clearly, the Olympics board has determined her age, so they should have let her know what it is, so she could avoid making the mistake in the future.
@@nleem3361there shouldn't be any confusion, the most might be a mix up of the day and month when written down, but not the year. When you write down your age you write down the year you were born on. That stays consistent, in Asia they also rarely ask each other "how old" you are, they'll ask "what year" were you were born on. I am also from an Asian country and the amount of years is based on the lunar year for some, so at some point you could be two years older. However the day, month and year born never change. This means there was never any confusion. It's as simple as North Korea was entering kids under age to participate. And they were trying to slowly age them up for some unknown reason.
This was meant somewhat in jest. Even though the way the count is different it does not account for them aging 8 years in a twelve year span or whatever they were trying to pass. Gymnastics is one of the few sports where it pays to be younger. Underdeveloped girls have an advantage in the way their weight is distributed on their body. I'm surprised no one has tried puberty blockers on some of these poor kids to delay their development and give them an advantage. Some sociopath may have already tried.
Korea actually traditionally counts age weird. Iirc the time in the womb counts as a year. And then everyone gets another year older in january instead of their birthday. So you can have a 5 day old newborn baby thats 2 years old with the traditional way of counting if its born just right/wrong. I dunno if thats in both Koreas though or just South.
Ages are done differently in Korea. Everyone is one year older than Western ages because they count a year for the 9 months of pregnancy. Additionally they count a year at New Years, instead of the day of one's birthday
@@ethomas2084 yes, but after your birth, everyone gains ONE year every YEAR. Source: I lived in Korea, married a Korean, and understand the Korean age system.
@UnitedStatesofAmerica1984 can't understand an analogy huh? The point is, whatever she is doing, she's most likely being forced to do it cause otherwise she would've done it.
The ages should still be consistent unless they're switching between international and Korean age systems which wouldn't make sense for back then, so I'm pretty sure they just forgot or thought the Olympics didn't care about Age that much
@VinceTheCreatorr gymnastics has always been strict about age. They increased the age to be eligible to participate after comenici (sp) and she will.femain the youngest due to that change.
Yeah, I thought they all change age on the same date sort of thing, so everyone uses how old they will become within that year. Is their calendar different too?
I wonder if they also do the ‘1 years old at birth and add +1 year on Jan.1st’ concept. It’s not until recently that S.Korea stopped using that age system. For example, if I’m 27 in America I would be like 28/29 in Korea depending if my birthday falls before the lunar new year.
There is a decent possiblility that this is the explanation, and that the individuals involved are so isolated that they don't realize that the rest of the world doesn't do it this way.
This may sound strange to you. But I will give you information on how to calculate the ages in Korea (south or north Korea). Korea has the custom of counting age inside the womb. So, when the baby was first born. The baby was already calculated to have been nine months old or one year old. That's why South Korea has two different ages. One is the age of Korea and the other is the international age. So, maybe this is why north Korea is adding age to its athletes because it's culturally calculating the age of Korea
So math & telling the truth are not North Korea's strongest suits. But to have a routine/move named after you is next level legendary, just like the Forsberg shootout move in hockey or the Vince Carter 'honey dip' dunk.
Most hilarious part about this is that the second gymnast has an identical twin sister named Hong Un Jong whose birthday has always been listed correctly and once flat out said she and Hong Su Jong were twins. Like their birthdays were the exact same day a year apart yet they looked the exact same lmao it was a joke
In Korea South/North you are 1 from the day you are born. When doing paperwork oversees it can get mixed up if someone else is copying the data because in most Western Nations you are 0 when you are born.
S. Korea ceased doing this in June 2023. That said, all Korean paperwork long before this people complete asks for a birth (생) year (년), month (월), and date (일). No paperwork (passports, drivers licences, deeds, etc) is declaring '+1 on 1 January'. South Koreans know their birth data, often both Gregorian and Lunar calendar forms. Gregorian is used for all official documents and Lunar is use for mysticism such as fortune telling. A few decades ago there was the phenomenon of registering an infant's birth on certain auspicious dates, and this required the connivance of the hospital where the child was born. This has fallen by the wayside because people came to understand one can't deceive the heavens with a false birth date.
She had no say or control if her country's committee changed her age. Competition is for talents and skills. She should not be penalized. It's another country which used loopholes to steal the medals they won by their skills. 😊😊
Depending on the date, this IS possible. The class before me (Class of 1996) graduated when I was 16. I graduated in 1997 at 18. It all depends how the dates line up.
Well all I can say is the film of those two gymnasts show gracefulness and excellence. It's awesome they got such high scores, but it's a shame they were banned.
Real Fact - Kim Jong un invented maths and said 1+1 is not 2 but a Bigger ONE as if you add two droplets 💧 of water it becomes bigger drop of water 💦 😂😂
I have Bhutanese friends who don't use our calendar & their births aren't registered. When they get passports to work in Australia, they are allowed to choose a birthdate. That's why so many have birthdays on 1st January. The younger Bhutanese know their exact dates.
Gymnastics has official or unofficial minimum ages right? For the olympics? 16 i think. Because the Olympics as a whole dont care about age. Youngest athlete this year is 11. Last time they had multiple 13yr old medalists. Including gold. (All skateboarding, the 11yr old too. Apparently adults are too bad at it.)
Different sports have different age minimums. It was found that women competing at too young of ages in gymnastics have permanent developmental problems. This was seen often with chinese gymnists, so an age restriction was put in place for the protection of children in this sport.
you have to turn 16 during the calendar year of that event (whether olympics or world championships or any other international event). so you could complete as a 15 y/o if the event occurs before your birthday
There's a minimum age for the health & safety of the gymnasts as their young bodies are developing & going through puberty. Super young gymnasts were being pushed to try dangerous skills they weren't yet ready for, physically or mentally, in order to compete at the senior level. A minimum age of 16 gives their bones & growth plates more time to develop & strengthen, more time for repetitions to gain muscle memory, more time for the girls to mature mentally which means they're more able to make smart decisions & speak up regarding their training & health, etc. It's also allowed gymnasts to extend their time in the sport if they want. Previously, the ideal age to compete was about 14 - 18, & anyone competing over the age of 21 was extremely rare. It was almost a given that they'd retire from the sport or compete only at the collegiate level after that because they were simply "too old" & unable to keep up. As it turns out, when girls are allowed to train smartly, aren't put through mental, physical, & sexual abuse, & aren't forced to train & compete with inuries that have permanent, career-shortening effects because their window of opportunity is so small... they're quite capable of competing into their mid to late 20s & beyond.
@@JustGettinBy1321 You forgot the worst and most important part. U.S.A. and U.S.S.R. athletes(and of course everyone else following their example afterwards) in the past using so many doping that their hearts could not handle it at a later age.
So the Olympic committee bands countries because they misrepresent their athletes age but let other countries’ athletes participate despite repeated doping scandals. Make it make sense. 😮😮
@@soulfulgardener And other countries who have an alarming rate of terrorists in their population who have no greater goal in life than to see an entire nation and its population wiped off the face of the earth. But sports events are not political so let's not go there, alright honey?
Why take away her gold medal because of her age?? She performed better than everyone else and it doesn’t matter how old or young she was at the time. It’s not her fault that her age was wrong. Give her the medal back.
@@lovegymnasts How much more qualified does she need to be? She won the gold medal. She's more than qualified. It wasn't an unfair advantage. She deserves the gold medal.
@@ruelpile There are a set of rules with qualification criteria and she did not meet the age requirement. This is straight forward and easy to understand.
Then why can’t you understand? What rule did she break other than not being the right age? Age should only be an issue in circumstances where it gives the athlete an unfair advantage, like in little league. But in this case it sounds like she was younger than the other gymnasts so she had no advantage. In fact, she has a disadvantage because she had less experience than the others. It wasn’t her fault she was exploited by her country. She was in the competition and won it on merit. Why can’t you understand that simple point I’m making??
@@julieproctor6039 it's not the kids fault she was probably just 12 and she executed the move perfectly it's not to honor North Korea but to honor the girl
They still have an international age, that’s what they should have used. Every South korean celebrity says their national and international age, the North should do the same
@@Raven84729 Yes, but the point is that they most probably don't know their own "age" (in international terms)... It doesn't justify it, but it's not so simple. Of course there is surely some guy that is either incompetent or lying somewhere.
At first I was like "Oh, someone got confused filling forms because of Korean Age," but no. In total, the math doesn't add up no matter how you count it.
@@lym3204 The girls probably would have been too young to compete if they had used the correct ages. So the advantage is that NK got to send younger athletes than those who adhered to the rules. If you don't know why: @TheJollyJokerDan put it great in another comment thread: "Because she's lighter, more flexible, has faster rebound from minor injuries, as well as overall less burden from past injuries (which every gymnast will keep adding up over time). Not all sports are equal, but in gymnastics in particular the youngest contestants easily outperform older ones, or loose the ability to do some tricks as they grow and their articulations develop. On the flip side, it's very dangerous to put their little bodies under so much stress and they are at risk of developing more serious long-term injuries, or not react as fast on a fall as a more experienced gymnast, etc..."
@@ethomas2084 I don’t know for sure. That’s why I wrote they “probably would have been too young” and not “they definitely were too young”. When you apply to compete everyone has to give their age based on the same calculation method. So yes: in north korea age is handled differently, but not when you want to compete in the olympics. According to another commenter (whose name I sadly can’t remember, but maybe you’ll find their comment when you scroll a bit) the difference wouldn’t explain the jumps in age anyway since the math wouldn’t add up even if you go by the north korean way.
In America (not sure about other countries and don't want to assume) when a baby is born their age is based on how long they've been out of the womb (seconds, minutes, hours), where as in North Korea, South Korea, Japan, and China (if I remember correctly for Japan and China) when a baby is born they are already considered a year old because of them being alive in the womb for 9 months (not sure how that would work if the baby is born early, like at 7 or 8 months).
So I lived in both Korea and China and they did count their birthdays that way. But that's not what is happening here. The N. Koreans are just trying to give themselves every possible advantage. This is what it's like to have a dictator.
I always found this idea interesting, but to my knowledge Japan, as said above, hasn't used the system officially since 1950 and South Korea officially stopped using the system in 2023. But China, North Korea, Singapore and Vietnam (if I remember correctly) still use it.
I'm pretty sure all the international orga dealing with this set a minimum birth DATE, based on the Western understanding. Like this year, for Olympics, it's technically "born before Jan 1, 2009".
Okay but either way you can be 3 different ages in a two year time span depending on when the birthday was. For example someone is 19 today, July 23, 2024. Their birthday was yesterday, July 22. On July 21, 2026, they’ll still be 20, they won’t turn 21 until July 22, 2026. Doesn’t mean they’re lying about their age.
@@hunterkline7972 just because you’re a low functioning individual and can’t comprehend what I said doesn’t mean I said a whole lot of nothing. I suggest you go back to school and learn how to comprehend what you’re reading.
That what I know there are different age in North Korea, including in South Korea, Japan, China, and in the Arab countries. They all have another way for age calculation. They used to calculate their age from moon revolution, shorter calculates from the sun revolution that international have been used. Sometimes they accindently put the age from moon revolution, a traditional age.
In this sport younger females often have advantages b/c they are lighter and more agile. As puberty and womanhood sets in, they get heavier and that limits their performance
I was curious about the same thing. So the judges are taking their ages into consideration when scoring? Seems a strange way to run things. Either have separate categories or judge them all the same. That sounds better to me. I guess that's why I'm not in charge. It would be too simple.
It’s North Korea, they will be placed in what ever category the country feels they are likely to win regardless of age. And it worked until they were found out. The athletes had nothing to do with it
@@dextermcgrubbin still shouldn't matter. If she did better than younger competitors despite being older, it should be her performance that matters, not the actual numerical age.
Okay, actually there maybe a legitmate defense for this. Lot of koreans go off the lunar year for birthday and not the gregorian calendar. It actually sometimes can be as much as a two year difference depending on if you're born earlier or later in the year. South Korea has moved mostly to the Greogrian but there are many that still track and have their birthdays listed in the lunar year.
Naw this is not a good defense at all lolz because the OFFICIALS from the state know DAMNED WELL how the Olympics works and the whole age verification process is very straightforward and clear. They did this on purpose. And btw, you could only claim this defense for the FIRST time it happened, but how would you defend the times after that?
@@joshuafranklin9630 yet none of the South Koreans have gotten banned over their age? When competing in international competitions, especially one as offical as the Olympics, they have to register their athletes using their international age.
Ummmm because we have rules for reasons dude. We don't allow 9 year Olds to compete in the Olympics because it is far too much stress and physical abuse on a child's body and mind. So if the rules say you must be 16 to compete, you MUST be 16 to compete. Period.
@markgado8782. Possibly. It's a big deal in lots of sports... like a 13 year old boy on a LL team of 9 year olds. Neither girl was 13 when they started to compete. Which is the minimum age. Why? Because at under 13 they're too flexible the bones haven't formed yet... some bones aren't fused yet. So technically they have an unfair advantage against the teens/adults. That's specifically why it's a HUGE deal in gymnastics
Hey now, WAIT! In East Asia, they DO compute age differently than your home in Compton. Age in Asia is determined from a baby in the womb, so 7-year-old in the West is considered an 8-year-old in the East.
I've seen that first girl before. She was nowhere near the age the n Korea claimed. She was missing baby teeth. She was like 9 or 10. Which made her absolutely amazing. But n Korea screwed her. Her performances were absolutely phenomenal. I love old school bar routines and one watched hers a lot bc she was flawless. If they had waited a couple years, she she would be well known as one of the greatest.
Almost right. The Korean age system not only counts the year (9 months) in the womb, but also every persons age is increased on the 1st January. The simple way to think of it is the number of years you have lived within. For example, a baby born on 31st December 2023 would be 2 years old on 1st January 2024. That sounds crazy, but they were alive in 2023 and 2024: 2 different years. All of this means that there is always a 1 or 2 year difference between western age and Korean age. You are 2 years older in Korea until your birthday, whereupon you are now just 1 year older.
There is a tradition in SK that when you are already born you are already 1 year old and international age is different w. I don't know if North also do it too. Maybe they are confused of theirs international age, or not.
Omg, i cant believe some of these comments. Its so much more to it besides some calendar stuff. Lets see they are a communism country and are under the KIM Jong Il's reign.
What i believe happened is this. A common practice in South Korea (likely North too) is to include or add the time they were still inside the mothers womb and so traditionally Koreans usually from the Boomers generation and past in general will add one year to their age or birthday. Not sure about the second gal but this is why an birthday/age controversy may present itself even til today. The Olympic committee should have consider this very common cultural practice during their investigation or before stripping, Kim Gwang Suk, the 1992 Gold metal she won in front of a world audience.
Then her age still would have been consistent. She always would have claimed to have been 9mos older than she was….not gaining 2years of age in 12 months like what actually happened
@@jh1603She may have actually had a birthday during that time which means it would have appeared she was 2 years older when an actuality she had just aged up one year.
Not sure if this has always been done, but now they set a specific date. E.g., to compete in 2024 Olympics, must have been born before Jan 1, 2009. So no: not possible to mess this up accidentally.
Imagine getting beaten by a 16 year old and then banning her cuz she did not met the age requirement ☠️☠️☠️ This aint onlyfans this is sports at international level
It could also be the cultural difference in how they count age. For example, starting at 1 as soon as a baby is born instead of zero and becoming a year older on the new year instead of your birthday. It could have just been a mistake in switching from Korean age to international age.
Cheating is when you take advantage of an ability, saying you are younger while you're older, not the other way around... it's embarrasing that europeans and U.S. citizens lost versus a child that doesnt have money and food. They rather disqualify her? Pff
@johnlauwowwww it happened in the Sidney Olympics, photographer has caught numerous Chinese gymnasts with literal baby teeth missing despite listed as adults and as a result the medal was stripped and awarded to another athlete. The gymnasts in question never competed again.
Sometimes it just seems they are looking for reasons to disqualify instead of affirming real skill. If you must punish the officials and trainers but not the athlete that truly has done all the work and deserves the win. I also believe you should not be able to judge unless you can or have done the routines. We need more fair and experienced scorers.
Bro idk why y’all so mad at them they probably don’t even know their own age they just get told it every year or so and they don’t question why they got 20 years older in one year
No. 1. Because there's a lot of rules they have to understand & this is one of them. & 2 because the minimum age, e.g. for Paris Olympics, was set at "must have been born before Jan 1, 2009".
There's a minimum age for the healrh & safety of the gymnasts as their young bodies are developing & going through puberty. Super young gymnasts were being pushed to try dangerous skills they weren't yet ready for, physically or mentally, in order to compete at the senior level. A minimum age of 16 gives their bones & growth plates more time to develop & strengthen, more time for repetitions to gain muscle memory, more time for the girls to mature mentally which means they're more able to make smart decisions & speak up regarding their training & health, etc. It's also allowed gymnasts to extend their time in the sport if they want. Previously, the ideal age to compete was about 14 - 18, & anyone competing over the age of 21 was extremely rare. It was almost a given that they'd retire from the sport or compete only at the collegiate level after that because they were simply "too old" & unable to keep up. As it turns out, when girls are allowed to train smartly, aren't put through mental, physical, & sexual abuse, & aren't forced to train & compete with inuries that have permanent, career-shortening effects because their window of opportunity is so small... they're quite capable of competing into their mid to late 20s & beyond.
Because western women get fatter EVERY YEAR. Other women don't.... Everything is rigged for western nations if yoy somehow haven't noticed. Why? Bc western women get fat quick!!!!
The way you count age depends in korea as they skip the birth day as year 2 not year 0 or 1. Gets confusing cuz then later when you meet people from the same year you go by the year and so when you deal with westerners u have to decide what standard to count by
It's better for the longevity of the athletes' career. I'm a fan of gymnastics, so this is my understanding. Teenagers are lighter and more flexible, they have this advantage. When the minimum age was lower, irresponsible coaches prioritised training teenagers to take advantage of their low body weight and flexibility to execute high level skills. This teaching method is not sustainable because teenagers will inevitably grow up, they will gain weight, lose flexibility, but their coaches didn't teach them how to build strength to continue executing the high level skills, so the athletes will inevitably fail as they get older. The lack of good technique makes them prone to injury, leading to a short career. A higher minimum age incentivises coaches to teach techniques an athlete can use as they age. Or it at least prevents coaches from purposely pushing athletes to perform high level skills with poor technique at a young age, compete in the Olympics until they're too injured to continue, then switch to a younger prodigy.
My daughter was born at the end of December. She does gymnastics and our age is often calculated incorrectly. They look at the year of birth, but in fact, she is always younger) In her age group, she initially had to work more, because girls of her year of birth were more coordinated and had more strength, at the age of 6-7 years this difference is very noticeable. Therefore, I can fully admit that if the competitions are not held at exactly the same time, and the athlete's birthday falls during the same period, then the difference can be more than a year)
Blaming those girls for lying is like accusing a hostage of being an accomplice.
The left does exactly that
Ever heard of Stockholm syndrome 😂
@@SuzyMoore-ob3pp Hopefully the drvgs have left your system.
@@SuzyMoore-ob3ppdon't be an idiot.
That's why they banned the country (hopefully)
I doubt any of those girls had a choice
Exactly ‼️💯
Unfortunately, cheating countries make their athletes pay the price
Wy are you saying that Mr Freedom??
I feel like if you're among the elite in NK, life is probably not that bad
Agreed 🤝
She wouldn't have lied , it would have been the officials . Guarantee she would have been blamed and her family at risk
@@nishthaneelabh8389
?
You may want to reread the OP's comment.
I think all the theories and news about North Korea is highly exaggerated.
@@owaisali8017you can think whatever you want my friend but unfortunately many of what’s said is true
@@owaisali8017go there then
@@owaisali8017some are exaggerated I’m sure but have you met a North Korean before?
I'm wondering if there was some sort of misunderstanding for the first girl. I'm South Korean and in Korean culture, you do not age on your birthday but Jan 1st with everyone else and also you are "1" right from birth. It's more like a "first year" kind of thing and not saying the baby is actually a year old.
Example: A baby born in October of 2000 is at the age of 1 until Jan 1, 2001 when they will turn 2. Despite the fact that the baby has at max lived 3 months, they are now said to be 2.
This creates the discrepancy that most Westerners tend to find confusing. In the year 2016, to Westerners, our example baby will be called 15 years old if asked her age in August and be called 16 years old in October. Meanwhile, in Korea, the same person would be said to be 17 for the entire year of 2016.
I could totally see people not grasping this difference in culture back then. It might just be that different people claimed different ages for this girl because one coach knew to give the western age while another one didn't, etc. Not saying that's what happened but it's possible.
I thought they changed that rule last year
@lindakim3051 they did but I'm talking about back when this event took place in the 90's
That’s exactly what I was thinking. But I would think they asked for birthdates, not just ages.
This is exactly what I'm thinking. There is a system called the korean age. I think whoever filled the documents just stated what basic thing they knew. Btw, South Korea just dismissed this age system last year.
Firstly, international age is used here.
Secondly, usage of korean age totally has absolutely no way of making someone age+2years in 2 consecutive years(even though its possible in int sys) so your argumentis invalid.
No one can have an age range of 2 years in this situation even using the normal aging system as the events aren't even a full year apart.
1991 wc- September
1992 Olympics-25th July-9th Aug
(For reference)
Knowing how North Korea is, I don't think that they lied because they wanted to 😅
What do you know about how North Korea is?
@@If6wasnineI mean, there are plenty of documentaries with defectors talking about life there. And you can visit North Korea but it's very restrictive.🤷🏾♀️
@@If6wasnine What do you know then big mouth?
@@If6wasnine Have you herd of Yeonmi Park? Or any other North Korea escape survivors?
@@catt512 Tbh, yeonmi strikes me as quiet phony. I don´t believe everything she says.
It ain't the gymnast who is lying, it is the country. You really think she go control over her own life?
High chance she don't eve have her own birth certificate.
This 😂
I am almost certain that most people here know for certainty that she was not part of the deception because we know that countries like North Korea, China and Russia always cheat in any athletic competition.
That's why they banned the country, not her.
@@cactmayne We know that; it's the person who made the video who does not seem to know that. They're putting it all on the gymnast saying "she lied" "she changed her age three times." The girls may not have even known about it, but even if they did they wouldn't have had a choice in the matter. They just did what their coaches and officials told them to do. What are they going to do, argue that it's not right and get their whole family sent to labor camps or worse? The narrator shouldn't be throwing the blame on the girls like that.
Age of 15, my ass. That girl wasn't a minute over 12.
She looks over 20 to me
@@lidiaolejnik4723you legit sound like a pedo
She looks 9 or 10 to me.
Uh what@@lidiaolejnik4723
@@lidiaolejnik4723keeping u away from the children
As someone born in Feb 29, I only change my age every 4 years.
Very funny.
So you can see year 2222. Cool
Born in leap year, that's cool
😂
Bro you are an immortal
Ok. So math isn’t a strong point in North Korea.
I don't think they teach that there.
@AlwaysThirstys I do not think they teach anything (useful or right) there
@@AlwaysThirstysya their math is different because they think the math we use is white people math😭
There is a possibility that they don’t actually know well how old a person is. I doubt they have an efficient enough bureaucracy to register every person and farming people sometimes uses different calendars.
in korea they say babies are age one when they are born. the NK team were clearly adjusting their members ages to fit the western standard of beginning at age zero.
It’s not the gymnasts who are lying about their age. It’s the coaches, clubs and politicians who are. Can you imagine the pressure mentally on these youngsters?
So you’re gonna talk about coaches…
Do you know understand the despotic regime North Korea is?
Meanwhile, Russian 16 yo ice skater can use horse stimulants to FOCUS, which gets no consequences
Me: Well, they can invade half the continent so🤔
What is all about ? Idk if any age restriction to participate in gymnast at olympics..only football required U23 wt 3 over 23 players
@@merchant_of_kek5697 "and politicians"
And they were under orders from their dear leader or whatever they have to call him
North Korea: good at gymnastics, bad at math.
They routinely won international math competitions. 😆
You sure it's not chinese kids posing as N koreans😂😂 ?@@Asiansxsymbol
Different calendar system, they celebrate glorious leaders birthday and aren't familiar with anything outside of their country.
@@Asiansxsymbol I bet they cheated in that to somehow 😂
Imagine that ….. a group of Asians so bad at math.
None of that takes away from her performance. This is a travesty of justice.
Yeah, I hate it for her.
Agree
Why keep lying? Once they reach the permitted age, claim an error was made and apologise.
@@michaellavery4899because it’s North Korea
@@michaellavery4899 It's not that easy. The N.Korean Gov is crazy (& evil). Who knows how they calculate age there... And the athletes' "official" paperwork is often faked by Gov. Either way, these girls can't say/do anything. They might not even know. Regardless, in competitions like this, just apologizing isn't enough. They're pretty powerless. Also, I've gotta feeling the admins were looking for a reason to ban N.Korea, for political reasons. Basically, whole country was "deplatformed" & the age change gave the admins an excuse to do it. Really sad. Punishing athletes because of politics isn't fair 😢
When The Supreme Leader says you're 15, look at his dogs.... Then Believe and agree.
To cope, we must remove a leg from each athlete and count the rings
Who made Lance Armstrong cheat? What about American athletes caught with drugs/doing? Supreme Leader?
North Korea: Dang it! They found out again. Bet they won't expect us to do it the third time
😂😂😂
100
Nowadays they can just *identify* the age they want this time around 😂
Third time is a charm
North Korea after disqualification: Ayooo, still a win for us at least we were allowed to participate unlike a certain Russian neighbor and their dictator regime 👀🤣
To be fair. I'm not sure if North koreans know their own age.
Yeah because I heard they don’t celebrate birthdays there.. correct me if I’m wrong ofc
Damn. That's probably a sad reality
Considering how weird South Korean age calculation is, I wouldn't be surprised it's all about North Korean age calculating system as well
@@nowak3452system on south Korea??? Don't get it
@@lulacrips8471 When children are born in South Korea, they're already 1 years old. On their 1st birthday, they are 2 years old. So, they're birthday is the start of their age, rather than the end of their age, as celebrated in the rest of the world.
For anyone wondering why there's a minimum age, it's for the healrh & safety of the gymnasts as their young bodies are developing & going through puberty. Super young gymnasts were being pushed to try dangerous skills they weren't yet ready for, physically or mentally, in order to compete at the senior level. A minimum age of 16 gives their bones & growth plates more time to develop & strengthen, more time for repetitions to gain muscle memory, more time for the girls to mature mentally which means they're more able to make smart decisions & speak up regarding their training & health, etc.
It's also allowed gymnasts to extend their time in the sport if they want. Previously, the ideal age to compete was about 14 - 18, & anyone competing over the age of 21 was extremely rare. It was almost a given that they'd retire from the sport or compete only at the collegiate level after that because they were simply "too old" & unable to keep up. As it turns out, when girls are allowed to train smartly, aren't put through mental, physical, & sexual abuse, & aren't forced to train & compete with inuries that have permanent, career-shortening effects because their window of opportunity is so small... they're quite capable of competing into their mid to late 20s & beyond.
there was even a ~48yo Uzbek/Russian!
I don’t see the problem. I change my age every year too
😂😂😂😂
Time is an illusion, anyone stuck its grasp deserves their outcome.
😂
Sometimes my age will change twice in a 370 day period
I dont see the problem too 😂
The athletes deserve compassion. North Korea is a prison.
Better then the westerner so called freedom and democracy😂
Lying in a competition doesn’t deserve compassion. The competitions didn’t take place in the NK prison so there was no excuse to lie.
@@MannMinnMonnyes, that's why so many Americans have to break free from this country to try and get asylum in N. Korea. I read about that in the paper every week: don't you?!
@@MannMinnMonnWestern Democracies are 100x superior to North Korea.
Hold up, you‘re telling me dictatorship NK is free to join the Olympics as long as they don‘t cheat and Russia got banned? 😂
For anyone wonder what the issue is, or why they would lie, you need to be 16 years old to be eligible to compete in IOC sanctioned events. If a gymnast is 16 at one event and then shows up 8 years later claiming to be 22 then they were really 14 at the prior event. Reporting proper ages (and not cheating) is ultimately the responsibility of the nation's committee which is why their entire program faced a suspension.
i dont see any advantage of being 14 over 16 ... i doubt that being 14 will boost anything .. the IOC is a joke .. they let men box women but cry when it comes to age . especially when making yourself older than you are .. all the africans who are close to 30 are lying that they are 15 to play against kids in highschool and college to get into the NBA .. nobody knows how old mutombo or manute bol were .. or any other african ... they are the real age cheater .. being a whole grown man playing against children .. but when children are whooping grown ups in gymnastics then its all of a sudden an issue ?
If they're under 16 but capable of performing these feats on the world stage, is the age barrier actually a good thing or a bad thing? I think it would be more interesting knowing that a 12-14 year old managed to get the gold medal at the Olympics. Not saying the country shouldn't be banned for misreporting, but I'm wondering what the point of the age requirement standards are then. Like imagine someone was 13 but beat Usain Bolt's time.
@@genericscout5408 The difference is that the runner is fighting from a disadvantage. There is a reason that there aren't many 6 foot female gymnasts.
@@pigs18 so then human feats wise being younger gives you an advantage for gymnastics? I think there’s some useful science to learn here if it was ethical to measure data.
@@genericscout5408 Gymnastics has a long sorrid tale of manipulating women's health to maintain prepubescent form. But for every rule in the book there's a fifty-fifty chance the answer behind its existence s, "Bela Kerolyi" who found every loophole on both sides of the Iron Curtain.
being banned for 2 years for an event that only happens every 4 years is like getting grounded from going anywhere until the next day arrives
you forget about the winter Olympics !
The little girl didn't change her age the people who were handling her career lied 🤷🏾♀️!
Some have proposed that theyay not even know her age? So maybe they put what she looks like.
Then again, supposedly they found put to ban the team.
Are there age groups?
in korea your age changes on january 1st not your birthday, possibly a clerical error if it was only wrong by 1 year
@@AlexRoseGames Fortunately that "korean age" scheme has been abolished this year, so all South Koreans nowadays have their international age.
In Korea they consider you to be 1 yrs old the day you are born.
Yes maybe in korea time is different if you don't obey kim❤❤
ban someone for 2 years on an event that happens every 4 yrs. Genius
😂😂😂
There are World Championships every non-Olympic year... gymnastics doesn't just revolve around the Olympics 🤣
Even to go to the Olympics, you need attend qualifiers
North Korea: smort
they banned the nation from competing at any of the international events-which occur every year. genius of you to comment on something you're not educated on
Why are they risking these people's lives. Just let them be
Like fr
Because winning athletes is part of their government propaganda. Do you think URSS supported sports for health or love? It was part of the country's propaganda. It was not the gymnast that lied. It was her government.
They don't understand it's literally life or death in N. Korea.
@@rogueredshirt5239 then what about the other participants? who lose againts someone who's older or has more experience than them
It's gymnastics, dude. Who's life is at risk? 😅
At that level of competition age is not relevant . It's the skill that matters. 15, 16, or 17 it shouldn't matter.
I was searching for that comment very long. The skills matter, not the age.
Right, because she clearly has a choice in the matter. We all know how strong women's rights are in North Korea.
I don't think they blamed her. That's why they Band the team, not only her.
Nobody's rights are strong in North Korea.
at least they arent forced to wear curtains over their entire body in public.
@@Icspiders247I see sarcasm isn't a strength of yours.
@@opinionated_take Why would I be using sarcasm? It's a factual statement.
Who would have thought North Korea was cheating.
How does changing your age make you a cheater? Does it give you an advantage?
@@jasonclassmate2292 It puts you in different categories, giving you an unfair advantage.
@@randomgatuno oh are there age groups in gymnastics? Also I think the girl pretended to be older than she was, what is the point of that?
@@jasonclassmate2292 the age limit to participate back in the days was as young as 15 years old. (Same data sent by DPRK) The public back then suspect Kim was even 11 years old.
It was the same time when there was a massive debate whether there is a need to increase age limit for young gymnast. (It finally happened in 1997)
Letting an athlete to complete any younger than this is considered dangerous for their body
@@zulucruz664 i see they broke the rules but is that really cheating? How is making an 11 year old compete against 15+ year olds and advantage?
In N Korea, age is just a number.
😂😅😊😂😅😊
Oh I know...
@@JustinNelson-kx7qy how do you know? First-hand experience? 🤨🚨🚨
Not that I trust NK but..."Korean age is generally one or two years older than international age, which is based on a person's birthday. In Korea, people age up on January 1st each year, regardless of their actual birthday. For example, a baby born on New Year's Eve is considered two years old the next day."
@@aflower5768 yup
That's him 👆 officer. That's the one!
J/k
to be fair both North and South Koreans have their own calendar, not sure about North Korean, but in China and s.korea, the moment you are born you are one years old, and when lunar new years comes by, technically you then become two years old. Although it’s been standardized to follow the global model. But domestically it still follow the old model
How ironic it is to say he lied about her age when everyone knows that it was the North Korea officials that did that. Cowards
And don't forget China does the SAME thing by sending young gymnast to the summer Olympics or any gymnast for the international community etc. The last time I heard China had a scandal that they sent a 12 yr old that lied to be 15 to the summer Olympics I think the IOC banned her for 4 to 10 years then later on either her or someone else lied that she was 15 or 16 but she was like either 11 or 12 years old she was banned and the IOC banned almost all the Chinese gymnast for (I think) 4 to 8 years and they put more rules to check all females and males gymnast not only in China but all countries after North Korea and China sending young gymnast to the summer Olympics etc.
Koreans count ages differently than western countries. I lived there for a while and still don't know how old I am.
In some countries they consider you 1 at birth and everyone's age increases on the first day of the year. So if someone was born on the last day of the year they would be considered 2 years old on their second day of life.
This is true. South Korea also does that. I've heard that you're considered 1 at birth. I'll bet the forms were confusing especially since they were likely not in the Korean language, so whoever was translating probably didn't know the cultural difference in counting ages. Rather than disqualifying the team, the Olympic board should have worked with them to clear up the misunderstanding. I don't see why she'd be disqualifiedas when she was older and clearly within the age requirements. (I do understand that the gymnastics rule makers want the athletes to be old enough to do some moves without causing damage, but once a person is old enough, it shouldn't be an issue anymore.
That's sad she was stripped of her medals 2 times for something she probably doesn't understand. Clearly, the Olympics board has determined her age, so they should have let her know what it is, so she could avoid making the mistake in the future.
@@nleem3361there shouldn't be any confusion, the most might be a mix up of the day and month when written down, but not the year. When you write down your age you write down the year you were born on. That stays consistent, in Asia they also rarely ask each other "how old" you are, they'll ask "what year" were you were born on.
I am also from an Asian country and the amount of years is based on the lunar year for some, so at some point you could be two years older. However the day, month and year born never change.
This means there was never any confusion. It's as simple as North Korea was entering kids under age to participate. And they were trying to slowly age them up for some unknown reason.
This was meant somewhat in jest. Even though the way the count is different it does not account for them aging 8 years in a twelve year span or whatever they were trying to pass. Gymnastics is one of the few sports where it pays to be younger. Underdeveloped girls have an advantage in the way their weight is distributed on their body. I'm surprised no one has tried puberty blockers on some of these poor kids to delay their development and give them an advantage. Some sociopath may have already tried.
I thought they were confused I don't think they want people to know any info about their citizens just like their country@@nleem3361
N. Korea math be like…
Q: If you have 2 parents and Kim Jong Un shoots 1, how many parents do you have?
A: 2
...
Q: If a baby was born 12 months ago, how old is the baby now?
A: 15
......
How many do you want me to have?
Korea actually traditionally counts age weird.
Iirc the time in the womb counts as a year. And then everyone gets another year older in january instead of their birthday.
So you can have a 5 day old newborn baby thats 2 years old with the traditional way of counting if its born just right/wrong.
I dunno if thats in both Koreas though or just South.
"Because Kim Jong Un's your new daddy now 🤗"
Kid: 🤢
the crazy thing is, i know a lot of people who change their age every year!
LOL, I saw the title and was like "no duh!"
North korean girl: Im 15
Kim Jong Un: No your 18
*you're
Your 18 what?
18 years, rdy to fk... U know
@@ProfibobWotCrazy
@@rogera3232
Q: Whats the value of pi?
A: 3,14159.....
Kim Jong Un: No, it's 19
A: 19 it is
Math in North Korea
1+1≠2
Because 1drop pf water+ another drop of water= a big drop of water
They hella dumb and can't understand context 💀
Ho, Ho!
Ages are done differently in Korea. Everyone is one year older than Western ages because they count a year for the 9 months of pregnancy. Additionally they count a year at New Years, instead of the day of one's birthday
@@ethomas2084 yes, but after your birth, everyone gains ONE year every YEAR. Source: I lived in Korea, married a Korean, and understand the Korean age system.
@@ethomas2084 the date of birth is the same
Don’t hate her, she innocent.
So true.
I wouldn't hate anyone who obviously had no choice.
@@nelsonk1341 Hate the dictator
@UnitedStatesofAmerica1984should you be executed for killing someone if someone else had a gun in your head, forcing you to do it?
@UnitedStatesofAmerica1984 can't understand an analogy huh? The point is, whatever she is doing, she's most likely being forced to do it cause otherwise she would've done it.
@@Anony888-gg33 The analogy is horrible tf how did u even bring this up
Funny how only the competitors of the US and NATO are always disqualified
😂😂😂
I think koreans has a different aging system.
The ages should still be consistent unless they're switching between international and Korean age systems which wouldn't make sense for back then, so I'm pretty sure they just forgot or thought the Olympics didn't care about Age that much
@VinceTheCreatorr gymnastics has always been strict about age. They increased the age to be eligible to participate after comenici (sp) and she will.femain the youngest due to that change.
they count one year ahead of their birth
so if she is 20 in one competition, she should be 24 in the next, not 21
Yeah, I thought they all change age on the same date sort of thing, so everyone uses how old they will become within that year. Is their calendar different too?
thank you! braindead people on the internet assuming they're trying to cheat
They are whatever age Great Leader says they are...
He never needs to poop and can control time and space.
I wonder if they also do the ‘1 years old at birth and add +1 year on Jan.1st’ concept. It’s not until recently that S.Korea stopped using that age system. For example, if I’m 27 in America I would be like 28/29 in Korea depending if my birthday falls before the lunar new year.
There is a decent possiblility that this is the explanation, and that the individuals involved are so isolated that they don't realize that the rest of the world doesn't do it this way.
That's only in South Korea. North Korea doesn't do 1+1 counting
@@andrewyang1994yes they do, bc it’s based on the lunar calendar. Although we don’t do it anymore here in the south as of like 2022
So actual birth isn’t birth? Birthing a human only happens “on the birthday”
Fantastic! Thanks for that insight.
This may sound strange to you. But I will give you information on how to calculate the ages in Korea (south or north Korea). Korea has the custom of counting age inside the womb. So, when the baby was first born. The baby was already calculated to have been nine months old or one year old. That's why South Korea has two different ages. One is the age of Korea and the other is the international age. So, maybe this is why north Korea is adding age to its athletes because it's culturally calculating the age of Korea
Please remember to make the "background" music louder, as it is still possible to hear some of the commentary.
So math & telling the truth are not North Korea's strongest suits. But to have a routine/move named after you is next level legendary, just like the Forsberg shootout move in hockey or the Vince Carter 'honey dip' dunk.
Education wise I wonder if she'll even know a move was named after her with all the censorship she gets.
Human rights aren’t over there big either
I mean, they have changed their calendar to when the Kim family started their rule over NK.
I've got a move named after me. My name is Oscar Blumkin.
Most hilarious part about this is that the second gymnast has an identical twin sister named Hong Un Jong whose birthday has always been listed correctly and once flat out said she and Hong Su Jong were twins. Like their birthdays were the exact same day a year apart yet they looked the exact same lmao it was a joke
I feel bad for their mother. Being in labor for a year must've been hell 😂
Never heard of twins born a year apart 😅
@@AustralianOpalRocksthey are north Korean. So lying about your age is really not the worst thing that could happened to you
Wow, she shouldn’t have been suspended at all!
In Korea South/North you are 1 from the day you are born. When doing paperwork oversees it can get mixed up if someone else is copying the data because in most Western Nations you are 0 when you are born.
Yes yes yes thank you for mentioning this... ive known this age thing awhile now about Koreans on how they count their ages... thank you thank you
S. Korea ceased doing this in June 2023. That said, all Korean paperwork long before this people complete asks for a birth (생) year (년), month (월), and date (일). No paperwork (passports, drivers licences, deeds, etc) is declaring '+1 on 1 January'. South Koreans know their birth data, often both Gregorian and Lunar calendar forms. Gregorian is used for all official documents and Lunar is use for mysticism such as fortune telling.
A few decades ago there was the phenomenon of registering an infant's birth on certain auspicious dates, and this required the connivance of the hospital where the child was born. This has fallen by the wayside because people came to understand one can't deceive the heavens with a false birth date.
There is this simple system called date of birth
I don't know if people want to excuse NK for lying or don't understand date of birth is what is reported to Olympics, not age.
I pray those young girls and their family are safe. 😢
It's so sad, because their families probably got some kind of punishment for "not winning"
What a brainwashed comment.
propaganda
@@Ren-mx9en Exactly. Brainwashed Nonsense from US Americans.
She had no say or control if her country's committee changed her age. Competition is for talents and skills. She should not be penalized. It's another country which used loopholes to steal the medals they won by their skills. 😊😊
you're admitting your complete ignorance of Korean culture and how age is counted, you're no better than the IOC
Depending on the date, this IS possible. The class before me (Class of 1996) graduated when I was 16. I graduated in 1997 at 18. It all depends how the dates line up.
Oh my god
I lost IQ points just by reading this.
Well all I can say is the film of those two gymnasts show gracefulness and excellence. It's awesome they got such high scores, but it's a shame they were banned.
Real Fact - Kim Jong un invented maths and said 1+1 is not 2 but a Bigger ONE as if you add two droplets 💧 of water it becomes bigger drop of water 💦 😂😂
That's some Terrence Howard logic right there.
@@aarongreenfield9038 😹😹
How much vs how many
fact? because some chick said it in some video its a fact now, lol
I have Bhutanese friends who don't use our calendar & their births aren't registered. When they get passports to work in Australia, they are allowed to choose a birthdate. That's why so many have birthdays on 1st January. The younger Bhutanese know their exact dates.
And she and 3 generations of her family died in North Korean work camps...
Goolag
Aren't you original!
She’s alive. They trot her out every Olympic year.
@@cupcakeordeath Who is trotted out "!every Olympic year"?
@@petergilkes7082ur mom
Im sure they don't have control over the paperwork. It is being reported by a coach or someone like that.
Gymnastics has official or unofficial minimum ages right? For the olympics? 16 i think. Because the Olympics as a whole dont care about age. Youngest athlete this year is 11. Last time they had multiple 13yr old medalists. Including gold. (All skateboarding, the 11yr old too. Apparently adults are too bad at it.)
Different sports have different age minimums. It was found that women competing at too young of ages in gymnastics have permanent developmental problems. This was seen often with chinese gymnists, so an age restriction was put in place for the protection of children in this sport.
The age was added in 1997 according to google. The problem here was her team lying not her age
you have to be 16 to be considered senior and participate in world championships, olympics, etc.
But seriously when they are in their 20s there is no need to keep lying. It's now just about skill
you have to turn 16 during the calendar year of that event (whether olympics or world championships or any other international event). so you could complete as a 15 y/o if the event occurs before your birthday
Why does their age matter at all? Do they have age categories where only people of a certain age can compete?
It's cheating because they're better at the sport. Any girl 12 or younger could automatically beat Simone Biles.
This is ridiculous thing to say haha@@CoachJohnMcGuirk
There's a minimum age for the health & safety of the gymnasts as their young bodies are developing & going through puberty. Super young gymnasts were being pushed to try dangerous skills they weren't yet ready for, physically or mentally, in order to compete at the senior level. A minimum age of 16 gives their bones & growth plates more time to develop & strengthen, more time for repetitions to gain muscle memory, more time for the girls to mature mentally which means they're more able to make smart decisions & speak up regarding their training & health, etc.
It's also allowed gymnasts to extend their time in the sport if they want. Previously, the ideal age to compete was about 14 - 18, & anyone competing over the age of 21 was extremely rare. It was almost a given that they'd retire from the sport or compete only at the collegiate level after that because they were simply "too old" & unable to keep up. As it turns out, when girls are allowed to train smartly, aren't put through mental, physical, & sexual abuse, & aren't forced to train & compete with inuries that have permanent, career-shortening effects because their window of opportunity is so small... they're quite capable of competing into their mid to late 20s & beyond.
@@JustGettinBy1321
You forgot the worst and most important part.
U.S.A. and U.S.S.R. athletes(and of course everyone else following their example afterwards) in the past using so many doping that their hearts could not handle it at a later age.
Yes. I think they have to be 15 years old for the Olympics.
So the Olympic committee bands countries because they misrepresent their athletes age but let other countries’ athletes participate despite repeated doping scandals.
Make it make sense. 😮😮
Russia was banned from winter olimpics for dopping
and allows other countries who are committing genocide
@@soulfulgardener And other countries who have an alarming rate of terrorists in their population who have no greater goal in life than to see an entire nation and its population wiped off the face of the earth. But sports events are not political so let's not go there, alright honey?
Change your age you're banned...
Change your gender that's fine.
Why take away her gold medal because of her age?? She performed better than everyone else and it doesn’t matter how old or young she was at the time. It’s not her fault that her age was wrong. Give her the medal back.
Because she was not qualified to compete
@@lovegymnasts How much more qualified does she need to be? She won the gold medal. She's more than qualified. It wasn't an unfair advantage. She deserves the gold medal.
@@ruelpilethis is north korea. She doesnt get to keep it. The gov does. She probably went back to starvation n died
@@ruelpile There are a set of rules with qualification criteria and she did not meet the age requirement. This is straight forward and easy to understand.
Then why can’t you understand? What rule did she break other than not being the right age? Age should only be an issue in circumstances where it gives the athlete an unfair advantage, like in little league. But in this case it sounds like she was younger than the other gymnasts so she had no advantage. In fact, she has a disadvantage because she had less experience than the others. It wasn’t her fault she was exploited by her country. She was in the competition and won it on merit. Why can’t you understand that simple point I’m making??
Growing up in gymnastics is rough. Growing up in gymnastics in North Korea is an inconceivable horror
its the life of luxury
I remember the commentators of the 92 Olympics saying she was actually 11 and still had a lot of baby teeth.
Missiles over math seems to be a recurring theme.
At least they named the move after her
who does that
@@julieproctor6039 it's not the kids fault she was probably just 12 and she executed the move perfectly it's not to honor North Korea but to honor the girl
North Korea doesn't use the same calendar as us and not just the North but the whole of Korea in general count age in a different manner
They still have an international age, that’s what they should have used. Every South korean celebrity says their national and international age, the North should do the same
It also doesn’t explain how in 4 years the second gymnast only aged 1 year
Nope @@Raven84729
@@Raven84729 Yes, but the point is that they most probably don't know their own "age" (in international terms)... It doesn't justify it, but it's not so simple. Of course there is surely some guy that is either incompetent or lying somewhere.
S Korea no longer legally uses anything but international age. They just passed a law.
Reminds me of all the controversies at the 2008 Beijing Olympics...🫣🥴
Ban the Olympics forever!! They are despicable!!
Like the Special Olympics in the movie The Ringer?
At first I was like "Oh, someone got confused filling forms because of Korean Age," but no. In total, the math doesn't add up no matter how you count it.
But no advantage to lying about age.
@@lym3204 The girls probably would have been too young to compete if they had used the correct ages. So the advantage is that NK got to send younger athletes than those who adhered to the rules.
If you don't know why:
@TheJollyJokerDan put it great in another comment thread: "Because she's lighter, more flexible, has faster rebound from minor injuries, as well as overall less burden from past injuries (which every gymnast will keep adding up over time). Not all sports are equal, but in gymnastics in particular the youngest contestants easily outperform older ones, or loose the ability to do some tricks as they grow and their articulations develop.
On the flip side, it's very dangerous to put their little bodies under so much stress and they are at risk of developing more serious long-term injuries, or not react as fast on a fall as a more experienced gymnast, etc..."
@@gwennygrausamt ty for @ing the other guy and giving us an explanation. You're a real one 💕
How do you know without knowing the girl's birth date? In Korea, everyone is aged a year on new years, rather than their birth date
@@ethomas2084 I don’t know for sure. That’s why I wrote they “probably would have been too young” and not “they definitely were too young”.
When you apply to compete everyone has to give their age based on the same calculation method. So yes: in north korea age is handled differently, but not when you want to compete in the olympics. According to another commenter (whose name I sadly can’t remember, but maybe you’ll find their comment when you scroll a bit) the difference wouldn’t explain the jumps in age anyway since the math wouldn’t add up even if you go by the north korean way.
In America (not sure about other countries and don't want to assume) when a baby is born their age is based on how long they've been out of the womb (seconds, minutes, hours), where as in North Korea, South Korea, Japan, and China (if I remember correctly for Japan and China) when a baby is born they are already considered a year old because of them being alive in the womb for 9 months (not sure how that would work if the baby is born early, like at 7 or 8 months).
So abortion is murder
Thank you. I wasn't sure if I had gotten that right.
So I lived in both Korea and China and they did count their birthdays that way. But that's not what is happening here. The N. Koreans are just trying to give themselves every possible advantage. This is what it's like to have a dictator.
I always found this idea interesting, but to my knowledge Japan, as said above, hasn't used the system officially since 1950 and South Korea officially stopped using the system in 2023.
But China, North Korea, Singapore and Vietnam (if I remember correctly) still use it.
I'm pretty sure all the international orga dealing with this set a minimum birth DATE, based on the Western understanding.
Like this year, for Olympics, it's technically "born before Jan 1, 2009".
in North Korea, obviously the people dont age by earth going around the Sun
"North Korean Changing Their Age Every Year" - I do, too!
It's rude to ask a lady her age, this should not be an issue
She wasn’t a lady yet. She was a child.
Okay but either way you can be 3 different ages in a two year time span depending on when the birthday was.
For example someone is 19 today, July 23, 2024. Their birthday was yesterday, July 22. On July 21, 2026, they’ll still be 20, they won’t turn 21 until July 22, 2026.
Doesn’t mean they’re lying about their age.
You just said a whole lot of nothing, good job 👏
@@hunterkline7972 just because you’re a low functioning individual that can’t comprehend what I said doesn’t mean I said a whole lot of nothing.
@@hunterkline7972 just because you’re a low functioning individual and can’t comprehend what I said doesn’t mean I said a whole lot of nothing. I suggest you go back to school and learn how to comprehend what you’re reading.
19 in 2004
20 in 2006
21 in 2010
Explain that one tough guy 😅😂
@@AA_BB_CC_D who’s being a tough guy?
19 in 2004 and 20 in 2006 is possible, I already explained it.
That what I know there are different age in North Korea, including in South Korea, Japan, China, and in the Arab countries. They all have another way for age calculation. They used to calculate their age from moon revolution, shorter calculates from the sun revolution that international have been used. Sometimes they accindently put the age from moon revolution, a traditional age.
What's the point of lying about their age? I don't think there's age restrictions. What am I missing?
In this sport younger females often have advantages b/c they are lighter and more agile. As puberty and womanhood sets in, they get heavier and that limits their performance
I was curious about the same thing. So the judges are taking their ages into consideration when scoring? Seems a strange way to run things. Either have separate categories or judge them all the same. That sounds better to me. I guess that's why I'm not in charge. It would be too simple.
@@dextermcgrubbin but that still doesn't explain how lying about your age helps 😅
It’s North Korea, they will be placed in what ever category the country feels they are likely to win regardless of age. And it worked until they were found out. The athletes had nothing to do with it
@@dextermcgrubbin still shouldn't matter. If she did better than younger competitors despite being older, it should be her performance that matters, not the actual numerical age.
Okay, actually there maybe a legitmate defense for this. Lot of koreans go off the lunar year for birthday and not the gregorian calendar. It actually sometimes can be as much as a two year difference depending on if you're born earlier or later in the year. South Korea has moved mostly to the Greogrian but there are many that still track and have their birthdays listed in the lunar year.
I was thinking this as well. I have a korean friend who has 2 ages whenever he's asked. 😂 I just told him to say he's old 😂😂😂
@@laiamchronicles my girlfriend (Korean), is 29, and I'm 27. If we we went off the lunar calendar, she'd be almost 31, and I'd be 29.
Naw this is not a good defense at all lolz because the OFFICIALS from the state know DAMNED WELL how the Olympics works and the whole age verification process is very straightforward and clear. They did this on purpose. And btw, you could only claim this defense for the FIRST time it happened, but how would you defend the times after that?
@@SquirtlePower809 because people in SK tracked their birth this way up until about five years ago?
@@joshuafranklin9630 yet none of the South Koreans have gotten banned over their age? When competing in international competitions, especially one as offical as the Olympics, they have to register their athletes using their international age.
Sounds like they have some super talented gymnasts! 😂
bro korean age system is +1 dont blame her bro
Dude who cares, she was better she won
Ummmm because we have rules for reasons dude. We don't allow 9 year Olds to compete in the Olympics because it is far too much stress and physical abuse on a child's body and mind. So if the rules say you must be 16 to compete, you MUST be 16 to compete. Period.
@@SquirtlePower809was she 9? Calm down.
She was old enough to compete. That SHOULD be enough, imho.
@@markgado8782 Because other countries were jealous that's why!
@markgado8782. Possibly. It's a big deal in lots of sports... like a 13 year old boy on a LL team of 9 year olds.
Neither girl was 13 when they started to compete. Which is the minimum age. Why? Because at under 13 they're too flexible the bones haven't formed yet... some bones aren't fused yet. So technically they have an unfair advantage against the teens/adults. That's specifically why it's a HUGE deal in gymnastics
@@SquirtlePower809 if you're 16 and losing to a 9 year old, you didn't deserve to win
Hey now, WAIT! In East Asia, they DO compute age differently than your home in Compton. Age in Asia is determined from a baby in the womb, so 7-year-old in the West is considered an 8-year-old in the East.
Compton ? NWA type?
100% true
Yeah but they submit their DOB. So if they submit same dob every year it wouldn’t be a problem. They obviously weren’t doing that.
I've seen that first girl before. She was nowhere near the age the n Korea claimed. She was missing baby teeth. She was like 9 or 10. Which made her absolutely amazing. But n Korea screwed her. Her performances were absolutely phenomenal. I love old school bar routines and one watched hers a lot bc she was flawless. If they had waited a couple years, she she would be well known as one of the greatest.
Almost right. The Korean age system not only counts the year (9 months) in the womb, but also every persons age is increased on the 1st January. The simple way to think of it is the number of years you have lived within. For example, a baby born on 31st December 2023 would be 2 years old on 1st January 2024. That sounds crazy, but they were alive in 2023 and 2024: 2 different years.
All of this means that there is always a 1 or 2 year difference between western age and Korean age. You are 2 years older in Korea until your birthday, whereupon you are now just 1 year older.
There is a tradition in SK that when you are already born you are already 1 year old and international age is different w. I don't know if North also do it too. Maybe they are confused of theirs international age, or not.
Omg, i cant believe some of these comments. Its so much more to it besides some calendar stuff. Lets see they are a communism country and are under the
KIM Jong Il's reign.
True. Japan too
They can't match Pakistani cricketers. Shahid Afridi was 15 years old for like 10 years 😂
What i believe happened is this. A common practice in South Korea (likely North too) is to include or add the time they were still inside the mothers womb and so traditionally Koreans usually from the Boomers generation and past in general will add one year to their age or birthday.
Not sure about the second gal but this is why an birthday/age controversy may present itself even til today. The Olympic committee should have consider this very common cultural practice during their investigation or before stripping, Kim Gwang Suk, the 1992 Gold metal she won in front of a world audience.
Then her age still would have been consistent. She always would have claimed to have been 9mos older than she was….not gaining 2years of age in 12 months like what actually happened
@@jh1603She may have actually had a birthday during that time which means it would have appeared she was 2 years older when an actuality she had just aged up one year.
She was not even a teenager.. look at her all of 9
If I’m not mistaken, Koreans count the year they are born in.
Not sure if this has always been done, but now they set a specific date. E.g., to compete in 2024 Olympics, must have been born before Jan 1, 2009.
So no: not possible to mess this up accidentally.
Imagine getting beaten by a 16 year old and then banning her cuz she did not met the age requirement ☠️☠️☠️
This aint onlyfans this is sports at international level
If you suck so much that you even get your ass beat by 9 year for even just a bronze medal, you should just the quit the Sport. 💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀💀
It could also be the cultural difference in how they count age. For example, starting at 1 as soon as a baby is born instead of zero and becoming a year older on the new year instead of your birthday. It could have just been a mistake in switching from Korean age to international age.
Forever young! What talents! 😊😊🎉🎉❤❤❤
Cheating is when you take advantage of an ability, saying you are younger while you're older, not the other way around... it's embarrasing that europeans and U.S. citizens lost versus a child that doesnt have money and food. They rather disqualify her? Pff
Not just them. Even China did this numerous times!
When? Just curious
@johnlauwowwww it happened in the Sidney Olympics, photographer has caught numerous Chinese gymnasts with literal baby teeth missing despite listed as adults and as a result the medal was stripped and awarded to another athlete. The gymnasts in question never competed again.
You're telling me I can't depend on the honesty of the North Korean government? That was my standard for trusting people.
I have a move named after me too. It’s the, “sit down” maneuver.
Cheating is a North Korean strong point
Sometimes it just seems they are looking for reasons to disqualify instead of affirming real skill. If you must punish the officials and trainers but not the athlete that truly has done all the work and deserves the win. I also believe you should not be able to judge unless you can or have done the routines. We need more fair and experienced scorers.
I mean, it's North Korea. The people are great, government - not so much.
Bro idk why y’all so mad at them they probably don’t even know their own age they just get told it every year or so and they don’t question why they got 20 years older in one year
Wait, isn't in Korean culture you are born as age 1 instead of age 0? Could this be the source of the discrepancy (at least partially)?
She aged 1 year in 4 years?? Is this the NK system?
@@barrybarry343no, they only start at 1 and age every year on new year, the age was still wrong even in their system
@@dragonixheli5474 yeahh
North Korea has their own calendar.
Its bad math. Its not corruption.
No. 1. Because there's a lot of rules they have to understand & this is one of them. & 2 because the minimum age, e.g. for Paris Olympics, was set at "must have been born before Jan 1, 2009".
Why does your age dictate your result? That's fucked
The Olympic committee raised the minimum age to like 16 I think. It used to be 14.
There's a minimum age for the healrh & safety of the gymnasts as their young bodies are developing & going through puberty. Super young gymnasts were being pushed to try dangerous skills they weren't yet ready for, physically or mentally, in order to compete at the senior level. A minimum age of 16 gives their bones & growth plates more time to develop & strengthen, more time for repetitions to gain muscle memory, more time for the girls to mature mentally which means they're more able to make smart decisions & speak up regarding their training & health, etc.
It's also allowed gymnasts to extend their time in the sport if they want. Previously, the ideal age to compete was about 14 - 18, & anyone competing over the age of 21 was extremely rare. It was almost a given that they'd retire from the sport or compete only at the collegiate level after that because they were simply "too old" & unable to keep up. As it turns out, when girls are allowed to train smartly, aren't put through mental, physical, & sexual abuse, & aren't forced to train & compete with inuries that have permanent, career-shortening effects because their window of opportunity is so small... they're quite capable of competing into their mid to late 20s & beyond.
@@JustGettinBy1321The Olympic Committee does not care about the health of Asians….
Because western women get fatter EVERY YEAR. Other women don't....
Everything is rigged for western nations if yoy somehow haven't noticed. Why? Bc western women get fat quick!!!!
The way you count age depends in korea as they skip the birth day as year 2 not year 0 or 1. Gets confusing cuz then later when you meet people from the same year you go by the year and so when you deal with westerners u have to decide what standard to count by
So age is a problem but gender which gives beyond massive advantages isn’t at all…..
honestly who cares you good you can compete it only understandable about the age is the reach and flexibility when coming to age.
It's better for the longevity of the athletes' career. I'm a fan of gymnastics, so this is my understanding. Teenagers are lighter and more flexible, they have this advantage. When the minimum age was lower, irresponsible coaches prioritised training teenagers to take advantage of their low body weight and flexibility to execute high level skills. This teaching method is not sustainable because teenagers will inevitably grow up, they will gain weight, lose flexibility, but their coaches didn't teach them how to build strength to continue executing the high level skills, so the athletes will inevitably fail as they get older. The lack of good technique makes them prone to injury, leading to a short career.
A higher minimum age incentivises coaches to teach techniques an athlete can use as they age. Or it at least prevents coaches from purposely pushing athletes to perform high level skills with poor technique at a young age, compete in the Olympics until they're too injured to continue, then switch to a younger prodigy.
If she has the skills she can compete period
Lmaooooo no that's not how things work lmao
@@SquirtlePower809 🤷🏻♂️ so what ? If they parents allow her to compete and she was in elite level about performance why not !!??
My daughter was born at the end of December. She does gymnastics and our age is often calculated incorrectly. They look at the year of birth, but in fact, she is always younger) In her age group, she initially had to work more, because girls of her year of birth were more coordinated and had more strength, at the age of 6-7 years this difference is very noticeable. Therefore, I can fully admit that if the competitions are not held at exactly the same time, and the athlete's birthday falls during the same period, then the difference can be more than a year)